Marjam - Younger sister. Married just before the end of the world, sent one of her old headscarves to Roubani for good luck.

Early Days

Born on Sagittaron, Nadiv Roubani was the second youngest of five children in a working class family. Both his parents had been born and raised in the strongly traditional, heavily religious southern part of the colony, and - as many did - brought with them to the city. His father, a sergeant in the police force, was a strict, often abusive disciplinarian who demanded hard work and piety from his children.

Education

University of Aera Cura, Sagittaron (Bachelor of Science in Physics, Summa Cum Laude)

When Nadiv finished high school, the expectation of his proud father was that he would follow tradition - immediately start working, and marry. The girl, in fact, was already picked out for him, and had been since he was 14. Nadiv, however, applied for and won a scholarship to the University of Aera Cura. He didn't tell his father so until two weeks before the semester was to begin. It sparked an argument that turned violent, and Nadiv fled to his brother's home where he lived for nearly two years.

He attended university and chose physics early on. Able to indulge a childhood fascination with flight, he began turning his sights towards aerospace work during his junior year. His senior project was on thermal control in military Vipers, which won the university's physics award for the graduating class, and he graduated at 21 with flying colours.

Military Service

Nadiv chose the Air Wing not for the exhilaration or the chicks, but because he had his eye on graduate school on Caprica. A graduate from Sagittaron needed a competitive edge to break into selective circles like that. That edge showed up when a military recruiter came to campus, and once 'Air Wing' was mentioned, Nadiv knew he had an out. What better to look good on a grad school application for aerospace engineering than learning to fly the very machines he was so interested in?

It was that out that caused another intense fight with his father, who had barely accepted the university attendance on condition that afterwards, his son would finally honour the marriage arrangement. Nadiv went home long enough to pack his things and then left for for year and a half of flight school. He kept up correspondence with his siblings, but never heard a word from his father. The silence continued as he completed flight school and was posted first aboard the Demeter, a flight research vessel that was eventually grounded when the project ran out of funding.

Distinguishing Features

Soft-spoken.

Doesn't like touching other people or being touched.

Tendency to think everyone gets his obscure physics jokes.

Tattoo: Mathematical formula on his right arm.

Trivia

Skills

Drawing.

Playing chess, sometimes completely in his head.

On the Grid

Faces…

Lesson Learned…And Other Thoughts

Ensign Eddie Morales. Appreciation. Back when I barely knew anyone onboard from Deucalion, she was the one who never treated me like some kind of strange freak. Time has passed and I've learned that you can't know what a true friendship is without some bits of rocky road here and there. She has a certain piece of my heart that nobody else does, and I would do anything for her. Some people exaggerate when they say they would be willing to die for a friend. I can say firsthand that it's true.

Captain Althea "Black Cat" Legacy. Endurance. Dear Thea. She sets such high standards for happiness that I don't know if she'll ever meet them, and she deserves a lot more. But she also often turns blinders to what she has when faced with the bleakness of what she doesn't. In the little blinks of time that she's happy, though, she can light up the blackness of space itself.

Captain Karim Aiteru "Spider" Marek. Forgiveness. A piece of home, the only one who understands where we both came from and the way Tradition was. I take some selfish comfort in that sometimes. I have watched him lay down many a weighty burden, and through him learned to lay down a few of my own. None have been easy. He reminds me of how complicated men are; for how blunt he can be, he is rarely straightforward. But there is something in me that understands. And he will always be dear to me.

Lieutenant Timon "Ivory" Stathis. Humility. Interesting sort, one of few I can have a good argument with and still feel civilised in the morning. Since Scorpia I feel like I've watched a 32 year old man grow up in the span of a few months, even if he's still painfully awkward at times. I feel I can talk to him about things that would have most others wondering if I'd lost my fool mind. If I could have traded one of my brothers for anyone, it would have been him.

Lieutenant Samantha "Case" Passi. Civility. I can't lie and say I'm comfortable with her. She has absolutely no tact, and is inconsistent with what (and who) she wants. Still, she is a superior officer and I will treat her with respect, if also with great, great caution. What goes around will come around.

Lieutenant JG Anton "Thorn" Komnenos. Discipline. There's something about him that used to be happier, or at least less bitter. I'm not sure what it is though I suspect, as with many, it has something to do with women. We don't see eye to eye on the gods, but I will try to skirt around that until the day he wants to discuss it, if ever. He's surprisingly fussy at times, but he is undeniably brilliant and I find I enjoy his company. And that's twice now he's made me lose my temper. I'm impressed.

Damon. Dignity. He showed up on Scorpia and told me his story one evening in the bunker. He's been let go from the brig finally, after nearly two months. Life here isn't going to be easy for him. But his guilt or innocence notwithstanding, I feel like I will trust him when it comes down to it.

Lieutenant JG Kisseus "Kissybear" Matto. Life. The first few times I met him he intimidated me, to tell the truth. He is just about everything I'm not, and sometimes being around him is what I imagine being shocked with defibrillator paddles must be like. A jolt of electricity that restores your rhythm and leaves you feeling, quite simply, alive.

Lieutenant JG Willem "Rebound" Price. Challenge. Price calls frequent attention to his shortcomings, and I'm still unsure whether it's unconscious or just his way of trying to stress that he's not the typical Viper pilot. I can't picture him discussing women's backsides and high-fiving anyone in a locker room, so I suppose it works. We've had some good conversations and I do hope we have more. If I can get over feeling like I've got to watch my words now.

Sister Ariadne Adelphi. Honesty. She gave me one of Apollo's own great tests of truth without even realising until later. Her smile told me I'd done the right thing. She was so afraid of the rest of the ship in the beginning, but I've watched her find her wayand I hope she learns from the times she hasn't been able to solve everything. I may have meddled a little (alright, a lot) in getting her and Stathis together. I admit it, it was kind of fun.

Captain Sen Eos. Dedication. My current CO, from after I broke my wing. I feel like a well cared-for little orphan running around her house, doing my best to make her happy. She can have any candy I ever find.

Lieutenant Ajax Crydel. Despair. I cannot fathom what depth of agony moves a man to take his own life. I can only pray the gods have mercy on his soul and grant him peace.

Lieutenant JG Castor "Tinman" Leda. Differences. I believe him when he says he wants to be everyone's friend and family. And I wish him luck, I really do. He has a good enough heart and that counts for something, but I don't think there's room in him to entertain any points of view but his own.

Cyrus Korosti. Give Em Hell. Met him briefly on Scorpia. A religious man and brilliant, two points in his favour. I can't explain it, we simply understood each other after just a few things said. If I ever get back to Scorpia, I'm bringing him that spray paint.

PHD039 (28 May 2009) - Handbaskets and Where They Go - A recovery ward visit becomes an ocean of much-needed perverse hilarity. Roubani gets in trouble over lesbians, Cygnus announces things nobody expected to hear, Matto laughs himself into an asthma attack, and even the chaplain just has to stop and stare.